Archive for the ‘remarkable people’ Category

At the recent MIPTV market in Cannes, I interviewed Philip DeBevoise, the co-founder of the super-hot online video startup Machinima. This Los Angeles-based company has experienced some incredible results in the past year. They reach a global audience of 166 million viewers and they serve more than 1.4 billion video views each month. That’s way bigger than any traditional TV channel.

I’ve known Phillip’s brother (and co-founder) Allen for more than a decade. We worked together in the mid-1990s on pioneering online narratives and some early interactive TV concepts. I’ve watched his progress at Machinima with great interest because it offers some useful insight into the dynamics of the new video business that will eventually encompass today’s television industry.

I spent today with Kathy Eldon, the founder and President of the Creative Visions Foundation, at her spectacular beachside home in Malibu.

Since 1998, Kathy and her small team have accomplished something pretty impressive: they’ve fostered more than 75 activists who are committed to making change in a variety of places around the world. They’re getting results. And they are growing fast. Continue Reading

His formal title is “research assistant and PhD candidate” in the Fluid Interfaces Group at MIT Media Lab. That title is a spectacular understatement. It’s like calling Thomas Edison a telegraph operator, or Albert Einstein a patent clerk.

Governor Anoatubby’s role in making the Forum possible was hailed by several civic leaders in OKC. So I was keenly interested in learning more about him and his achievements. It’s a remarkable tale. Continue Reading

While visiting Israel last week for the Journey Conference, I learned about some inspiring developments in the Middle East. Israel is rocking!

It was an illuminating experience for me. In the USA, the mainstream media diet includes a steady supply of sensational stories about the Middle East, featuring suicide bombings, terrorism, rocket attacks and reprisals.

So one might arrive in Tel Aviv expecting fear and chaos. But the reality is Continue Reading